life, the universe, and everything

Thanks for all your support last week, blogger friends! Due to my deeply procrastinatory nature, I spent literally every spare moment of my life working on my presentation last week. I didn’t see Murray for five days, but on the up side, my presentation went really well. I got good feedback, and I didn’t disgrace myself. Despite being really nervous about my presentation in general, once I started talking I got kinda zen and didn’t have the voice or hand shakes I’d experienced previously.

Also, I made graphs like this! With my own data! MY OWN DATA MAN! I know not everyone gets excited about graphs like me and Megan, but damn guys. There is something to creating graphs out of your own data that is awesome.

I had a totally self-indulgent weekend of doing NO WORK and only all the most funnest leisure time activities. So Saturday I gardened my little heart out, and transplanted my last few seedlings to the garden. I put in the last of my home-started eggplant and peppers, put in the basil and kale, and conditioned the soil for planting carrots, which is basically why I started this whole garden to begin with. My whole plan was to feed Murray carrots and sing “Circle of Life” while I did so, because I used his poo to grow them. Boyfriend helped me build a little wabbit-deterrent fence around those tender greens, as many of my plants have been nibbled by the herbivorous kittens* that seem to populate our barn. We also planted mint, and I started prepping some mounds for pumpkins which we will transplant in a few weeks. Ellie helped by taking a dump in the middle of one of my watermelon plants and rolling in the grass.

Regular mint and lemon balm!

* This stems from an argument I had with my boyfriend where I insisted that there are no little fossorial creatures at our barn that would eat my plants. Then my plants got eaten. I blamed it on the barn cats.

Gardening totally took it out of us, and I declined to ride Murray Saturday. I did get to see him and pat him and tell him he’s so totally adorable. I’m kinda getting paranoid that he’s losing all the beautiful topline I’ve worked so hard to put on him, but he’s looking really fabulous weight-wise. So that is a plus.

Boyrfriend and I also made scotch eggs, which are soft-boiled eggs that you wrap in meat. Then you bread it, then you fry it, AND THEN YOU EAT IT. They are freaking delicious, though next time we will incorporate cheese and hot sauce.

A post shared by Nicole Sharpe (@nicolegizelle) on May 25, 2015 at 10:01am PDT

Saturday I also got a fantastic package from Sarah at Eventing in Color and Beka’s metalworking shop, Straight Shot Metal. So, I was basically about to buy from Beka’s store, because I couldn’t resist the horseshoe cuff and love metal work, and then I won Sarah’s raffle. What whaaat! Beka said she’d make me a gift pack and so I told her my colours (purple and pink, duhhh) and what I got was an AMAZING AWESOME PACKAGE!!!

Dressage mantra + collaging.

Beka sent me a dressage cuff as well as the thin horseshoe cuff, and I’m wearing both constantly. I’m very into permanent jewelry — stuff I don’t ever have to take off — and I’ve been wearing these since I got them. They’re super comfy, even with the computer work I’m always doing. And they look swanky to boot. And they jingle! I love jingling while I walk.

I am very clearly not a hand/arm model. My new bracelets join one I bought in Zambia in 2011 and haven’t taken off since.

Beka also included a bunch of charms which I will review more thoroughly in another post, but this one is absolutely perfect. It’s copper and stainless, and it says “zen” (says Capt. Obvious, just in case you can’t read…. which isn’t going to help you if you can’t read anyway). It’s about the size of a dime (best American coin btw) and is the perfect size for a braid charm. Which is exactly what I need: a braid charm to remind me to be zen.

Eff. Yes.

Sunday a colic emergency bogarted my riding again, as I had to rush out to my trainer’s house in the morning because one of the horses had an upset tummy. We administered banamine and waited for the vet to tube him, and at the end of all that I was tired and exhausted and sweaty so Murray got another day off.

All in all, a delightful way to spend a weekend. Now, on to the big plans for the next five weeks: Prepping for CAMELOT!!!

13 thoughts on “life, the universe, and everything”

I’m glad you had a good weekend, other than the colic, after such a crazy week! I love those bracelets! I am totally a bracelet/cuff person and never take them off either. I think I need to place an order.

I’ve never thought about it, but yeah, super love permanent jewelry, too. I thought it was because I’m inherently lazy, but I’d really rather not take stuff off.. ever. Glad you like it all! How’d you like the PURPLE?! (might not ever be able to replicate!)

And your garden is kicking my garden’s butt. I’ve got one cucumber so far and three rotten tomatoes. I need an in ground garden!